


Back To Summer Paradise With You

by iamaloserkid



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Cyrus is awkward and adorable, F/M, GHC are sophomores and TJ's a junior, Good Hair Crew, I aged them up a bit, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, Moving, Summer Vacation, apparently it turned into a grease/hsm au sorry not sorry, probably some mental health stuff coming up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-12
Updated: 2019-03-19
Packaged: 2019-10-27 00:34:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17756393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamaloserkid/pseuds/iamaloserkid
Summary: Cyrus always knew he wasn’t good at fitting in. He was socially awkward and generally had different interests than his classmates. Before the summer break he learned he and his family were moving across the country. He thought it was the perfect time for a new start and it all started that summer, when he met the most amazing boy ever...





	1. Before

**Author's Note:**

> So I've got some chapters written so far. I figured I'd start posting before I chicken out. It's been a long time since I've wrote fan fiction. But Tyrus makes me weak and I've caved in. Hope you'll like it!

Growing up in a small town everyone knew everyone. That meant once an opinion about you was formed, it was close to impossible to change that. So ever since he was 10, Cyrus was the nerdy, Jewish boy. Nothing more, nothing less. No matter how much he tried, it was a label that stuck with him. He got put into a box and it meant he always hung out with the same people in the same box. He never minded too much, his friends were really nice, but he always knew there was more to him than others thought. It was his last month of his freshman year when his parents sat him down. He immediately started thinking about all the serious things that could have happened. His mother recognized Cyrus’ look and started to calm him down.

“Honey, don’t worry. No one died. It’s not that bad,” she said and looked at her husband before turning back at Cyrus. “At least, depending how you look at it. Look, honey. You know that we always want what’s best for you. And for the family in general.”

“Yes?” he said, really not knowing what was going on. His mind was still buzzing with all the possibilities.

“We are moving,” she said carefully, “To Portland.”

Of all the things his mother could say, this was not one of the things that came to Cyrus’ mind. “But, we’ve lived here forever,” Cyrus said. He didn’t even know what he wanted to say with that.

“I know honey,” his mother said and tried to comfort him by putting her hand on top of his. “I wish I could have prepared you a bit, but things moved really fast. You know your great-aunt Ruth? She has this big house on the outskirts of Portland. It’s really beautiful. But she’s moving into a nursing home,” his mother explained.

“So, we’re going to live in aunt Ruth’s house?” Cyrus asked.

His mother nodded, “She thought about selling, but it’s the house her family, my father, grew up in. It’s too difficult for us to just let it go.”

Cyrus nodded. He understood where she was coming from. “But it means leaving the house I grew up in.” He didn't know why that was a difficult thought for him. He never really liked the town and the people. But still it was a part of him

“I know and I’m very sorry. But we have decided and I hope you can find yourself in our decision.”

Cyrus nodded. He understood. “When?” he asked, doing a bit of calculating in his mind. He knew for sure they were moving before the start of his sophomore year. And then it hit him. He needed to go to a new school. With people who didn’t know him. That thought actually excited him. Maybe he could finally find a place where he fit in.

“We will be moving in the second week of August. They will first do a little bit of renovating. And of course, as promised, we’ll be taking a short vacation as well.”

Right! Cyrus had forgotten about that. His parents are normally too busy to take a week or longer off for a vacation and he had been bugging them all year to go somewhere else for a few days.

“Where are we going?” he asked with a big smile.

His mother smiled at her husband and then looked at Cyrus, “We’ll be going to Santa Cruz for a week.”

“Santa Cruz!” Cyrus exclaimed. That was not what he expected his parents to pick.

“Yes, we have a hotel near the beach and the boardwalk. And,” she said and took a breath while looking at her husband again. “After some consideration, we decided to give you a bit of freedom during the vacation. So, you can have at least one day, where you can decided whatever you want to do. As long as you have your mobile phone with you and keep us updated.”

Cyrus nodded excitedly. Who were these people and where were his real parents?! He rarely got the opportunity to just go out and do whatever he wanted. And now they say he can? When they’re on vacation and a city he’s never been in? “Of course. I promise. Thank you!”

His mother nodded, “I need to start accepting you’re getting older. It’s one of my flaws, but I’m working on it. Now, go upstairs and do your homework. We’ll discuss more later.”

Cyrus hugged his parents and went upstairs. There was no way he could focus on his homework though with all this new information.


	2. I’m just looking for some real friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short first chapter, they should be getting longer, but it's just to get it started  
> enjoy!

Cyrus nervously played with the straps of his backpack. His mother drove him to school for the first day. Cyrus hated admitting he was nervous, but she could tell he was. “It will be fine, Cyrus. Just be yourself and you’ll make plenty of friends.” Cyrus nodded and bit on his lip as he kept playing with the straps. “Your stepfather will pick you up this afternoon, okay? And then tomorrow, you will go with the bus. This was a one time deal.”

Cyrus nodded again and then hugged his mother. He didn’t care it wasn’t cool, he just really needed his mother. He took a deep breath and then opened the door. “I’ll see you later, mom.”

She nodded and forced a smile, and he could tell even she was nervous for him. “It will be fine,” he repeated the words of his mom. He stepped out and closed to door and then turned to face the school. He had been there last week to quickly settle some of his transcripts, but this was different. It was crowded! This was a whole lot different than the high school in a small town. He put his backpack on and slowly made his way into the school. He walked the hallways looking for his locker. He sort of knew where it was and he probably looked like an idiot looking at all the numbers. But luckily he wasn’t alone, as all the freshmen had the exact same issue. He then found his locker and emptied some of his stuff in there. For now, he’d just leave it mostly empty. He’d figure out later how to decorate it. He then made his way to homeroom. Just as he neared the classroom the first bell rung.  _ You can do this, Cyrus. It’s just meeting your classmates. _ He looked around the hallway looking at everyone walking around when he spotted a face. It couldn’t be. No, it was definitely not possible. Before he had any chance to even consider it to be true, he was forced into the classroom by a few students behind him. He was still in shock and stood in the room, not really registering anything.

“Hello, Cyrus,” he heard and looked up to see his homeroom teacher. “Welcome to Jefferson High School.”

“Thanks,” Cyrus said and tried to look back into the hallway, but of course he couldn’t see anything anymore.

“You can sit with Buffy Driscoll over there. She’ll help you the first few days around here.”

Cyrus nodded and walked over to the table he got pointed to.

“Hi, you’re Cyrus?” a girl asked. He nodded and she extended her hand, “Buffy. Welcome to Jefferson High,” she smiled and motioned for him to sit down. “I’m happy to be your guide this first week.”

“You don’t mind?” Cyrus asked, not really feeling confident enough to just look at her. Damn you, anxiety.

“Of course not! I’m happy to see a new face. We don’t get too many of those. Everyone here I’ve known for years. Take these two losers here,” she said, pointing to the table behind them.

“Rude,” the girl said and the boy just laughed.

“Kidding. They’re my best friends. That’s Andi and that’s her...” she said and cocked her head. “Her Jonah.”

Cyrus softly laughed, “What does that even mean?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. The one moment they’re dating, then they’re not. And now I’m just confused,” she grinned looking at the pair.

“We’re just friends, Buffy. Again, we decided that was best,” she said, focusing on the girl besides Cyrus. Then she turned to him. “It’s nice to meet you, Cyrus. The Good Hair Crew is happy to be of your service.”

Cyrus played with the strap of his bag again. He really needed to stop doing that before he broke it or something, which he wouldn’t put psat himself with his clumsiness. “The Good Hair Crew?” he asked softly, and looked at the two behind him.

“Andi, I think we’ve grown out of that,” Jonah said and then faced Cyrus. “It was a middle school thing. And it’s nice to meet you. Glad to have some male energy.”

Cyrus shyly smiled, “Thanks.”

“I still think we’re the GHC. Because come on, our hair is still amazing,” Andi giggled and Buffy hi-fived her.

“Women,” Jonah shook his head with a smile.

This was better than Cyrus could have even imagined. Here were a group of friends that just let Cyrus in. They didn’t care he was new and maybe a bit awkward. They’re just nice and it’s so stupid that that’s a foreign concept to Cyrus. He’s not used to people just being nice. 

***

His first day was even better than he could have imagined. It was like it was fate he got put with Buffy. Their little group was really nice and fun and they really invited Cyrus to everything. And he could tell it wasn’t a pity invite. He sat with Buffy in math, with Jonah in history and Andi in art. And they invited him to sit with them at lunch.

All day though he couldn’t help but look around, hoping he’d see that face again. That face he had an amazing day with in Santa Cruz. Maybe he was just imagining things. Maybe he just really wanted to see them. To have some bit of familiarity. He decided it was just that. His mind playing tricks. He was sure his parents, psychiatrists, would say the exact same thing. It sounded like it made perfect sense. He was just imagining things, because he wanted it to be true. It didn’t mean it was actually true.

He waited outside for his stepfather to pick him up and saw his car approach. Cyrus slung his bag over his shoulder and walked over, proceeding to get in the car.

“Hey Cyrus, how was your first day?” his stepfather asked with a hopeful look on his face.

Cyrus sat down and a smile appeared on his face. “It was the best first day ever.”

“That’s great! I’m so happy for you, champ. You deserve it. See, this move wasn’t so bad.”

“No, it wasn’t bad at all,” Cyrus smiled at his stepfather, who rubbed his head. 

“Now let’s go home, we’re making dinner tonight.”

Cyrus nodded and his father drove off. He looked out the window and his heart stopped.

TJ.

He wasn’t imagine things at all. He was here.


	3. My youth is yours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> so this took longer than I wanted it to take 🙄  
> I hope the next chapter will be up in a few days, but I got a few extra shifts at work, so we'll see...  
> If things feel out of character or something like that, I'm sorry. I took the basis of the characters and sorta went my own way with it. Guess that's why it's pretty much completely AU 😅

Cyrus sat in his bedroom, not just yet ready to go downstairs. He stared at the little photo in his hand. It was teared off from a strip from a photobooth. He kept it as evidence for himself as he couldn’t believe he had such an amazing day. It was during the end that TJ suggested going into the photobooth. Cyrus had no idea what to do, he’d never been in one. But looking at TJ, it didn’t matter. He made him feel comfortable. The picture Cyrus had was one where TJ had his arm slung over him, pulling him in close. He was looking at Cyrus and not the camera and he had the brightest smile on his face. Cyrus was looking at the camera while sporting his signature blush. He sighed as he put it back in his ‘Box of Summer’. It had all kinds of little things from the summer vacation, but most of it consisted of that one day at the boardwalk. He bit his lip and put the box away, feeling ready to go downstairs. He just hoped his parents wouldn’t notice anything weird and ask him question. Though most likely they would. He knew his parents and they definitely knew him. It wasn’t that he wasn’t ready to tell them about his sexuality or things like that. It was always implied by his mother that she knew. But this, having a serious crush, and have that crush go to your school? That was definitely something new.

“Morning mom,” he said as he got into the kitchen and sat down for his breakfast.

“Morning Cyrus. Ready for another day at school?” she asked as she put the waffles on his plate. He smiled, knowing she only made it for special occasions. Apparently she was still a bit sorry for moving him across the country.

“I am, actually,” he smiled, digging into his food. “I think I made friends yesterday, so I hope I can sit with them again today.”

“That’s good, honey,” she smiled and sat down to drink her coffee and read the newspaper.

He quietly ate trying to control his jitters. He didn’t know what he would do if he saw TJ. Approach him? Or maybe it was just a one time thing to him and he never wants to speak to Cyrus again. Cyrus couldn’t imagine that, but it was a possibility and he really needed to keep all his options open. That way he could logically think about what would most likely happen and be ready for alternatives. He always had to have about 10 back-up plans. You never could be enough prepared.

Cyrus finished his waffles and grabbed his bag. “I’m off to catch the bus,” he said and walked over to his mother to give her a kiss on her cheek.

“Have fun. And learn. But most of all, enjoy yourself. Your deserve it.”

He blushed a bit at his mother’s words and nodded, “Thanks mom.”

He grabbed his jacket and walked out the door to his bus stop. As he approached it he saw Buffy.

“Buffy!” Cyrus said and immediately regretted sounding so excited. What if she didn’t want to see him? What if she got annoyed with him yesterday? Oh no, he ruined everything already!

“Cyrus,” she smiled at him and made room for him to stand next to her, to annoyance of some of the others at the stop. “I didn’t know you lived around here.”

He pointed to the street he just walked out from. “I live at the end there, at the cul-de-sac. The brown house with the big red doors.”

“Oh, a lovely old lady lived there! Se always gave us extra candy when we used to go trick or treating,” she smiled. “Yeah, my father told me she was moving and that family of hers would move in.”

“Yep, that’s me, her family. She’s my great-aunt, she moved to a nursing home,” Cyrus said, “But yes, she’s really nice. She always hid some candy in my room if I stayed with her. My parents are bit overprotective health-freaks at times, so she always spoiled me.”

“That’s nice,” Buffy smiled as the bus approached. “Usually I sit with Jonah, but the bus is still quite empty at this stop, so there should be a seat either in front or behind him,” Buffy said as she entered the bus. He followed her and walked towards the back where she sat down next to Jonah. She was right as both the seats in front and behind him were empty. He decided to sit in front and said hi to Jonah as he sat down. He hugged his bag as he looked around the bus.

“So how did you like your first day?” Jonah asked Cyrus, who looked up and faced the boy behind him.

“It was good! Best first day ever,” Cyrus smiled and leaned a bit against the window to properly talk with the two.

“I’m glad,” Jonah smiled at Cyrus could just tell he was a happy-go-lucky guy. Someone who always saw the bright side of things and just wanted to make people happy. “Oh Buffy, you know how I was talking about starting an Ultimate Frisbee team?” Jonah asked her and Buffy nodded in return. “I have an appointment with the principal this afternoon to discuss it. Hopefully he’ll give the green light.”

“That’s amazing!” Buffy said excitedly for her friend. Meanwhile Cyrus was a bit confused.

“Sorry, but what’s Ultimate Frisbee?” Cyrus asked. He was anything but athletic. He never went to school games and usually did the minimal in PE. He didn’t get sports and he didn’t want to get sports. But he learned it was good to show interest. So here he was, showing interest in something that he didn’t have interest in. Though Jonah’s excitement made up for his lack of interest.

“It’s frisbee. But you have end zones like with football and you need to pass the frisbee to your teammates to get it in the end zone for a goal. Once you’ve caught the frisbee you can’t walk with it. And the defenders can block and take over the turn, so they then get attacking position,” Jonah said talking animatedly with his hands.

Cyrus nodded. He sort of understood it. “So, you’re seeing if you can get a school team for it?”

Jonah nodded, “Yeah, I tried last year, but they said they didn’t have someone who could coach it, so I’m trying again this year. The principal did seem to like the idea. But it’s all about budgets and time and space, so fingers crossed.”

“Yeah, it sounds cool. Hope you can make it work,” Cyrus said and Jonah nodded excitedly at him.

“So do you play any sports?” Jonah then asked and Cyrus blushed a bit.

“No, not really. I’m really clumsy. I tend to fall and trip, so it’s better I stay away from things like sports,” Cyrus said.

“Okay, what do you like to do then? We got really cool clubs you could join. Andi is in art club. They make all kind of fun stuff. Last year she made me this bracelet,” Jonah said proudly, showing it to  Cyrus.

“And you tell me you’re just friends,” Buffy grinned with an eye roll.

Jonah looked her, clearly oblivious to the whole situation. “What? It’s a nice bracelet! Right?” He then looked at Cyrus.

“Yes, really nice bracelet,” he told him and Buffy just soundlessly laughed besides Jonah. “But as for hobbies. I guess I like to draw. I’m not good at it though. And I like writing. But again, not really good at it.”

“I’m sure you’re great! You’re an awesome guy Cyrus, don’t talk yourself down like that, man.”

Cyrus didn’t know how such a simple phrase could lift his spirits a bit. Maybe it’s was the honesty and kindness in the statement. Jonah could tell him anything and he’d believe it. 

“Thanks. Maybe I’ll check the art club out. I’ve never actually went to a school club or something,” Cyrus said, “My previous school kind off… sucked.”

“I think our school is pretty awesome,” Jonah smiled, “At least, I never felt like anything really sucked here. I guess there are some people that just aren’t nice, but I guess that’s normal.”

Buffy just laughed at Jonah, “I really wonder how you fight with people. You will probably insult them to then apologize for hurting their feelings.” She then turned to Cyrus, “Honestly, he’s too nice. Like, way too nice.”

“Since when is being nice a bad thing?” Jonah asked.

Buffy just shook her head with a smile. “But back to the clubs, I think Andi would really like it if you joined. We all sort of have our different things. For example, I play basketball. So we never really have friends around when we do the things we love doing. Like, I cannot do crafts. Just. No. Please. So if you would like to take the role of ‘artsy friend’ please do. Save me. I still have nightmares that involve glitter.”

Cyrus softly laughed at the remark, but Buffy looked at him with a serious nod and he knew she wasn’t joking. “Okay. I will join.” He actually didn’t feel pressured to join. He knew normally it would feel like that, saying no is a difficult thing. But art club sounded fun. Like something he would really enjoy.

***

They were sitting at lunch and Andi couldn’t stop talking about art club and how fun it was and how much Cyrus would enjoy it. Maybe he understood what Buffy meant with ‘save me’. Andi was intense when she liked something. Maybe not intense, but just really passionate. He could see it being too much if it was a subject you weren’t interested in.

Cyrus was listening to Andi talk while his eyes scanned the cafeteria. His eyes fell shortly on Buffy across of him who, he noticed, squinted her eyes at something behind Cyrus. If looks could kill, the person who it was directed it would be dead right now. 

“Um, what’s wrong?” Cyrus asked, not really sure if that was something he could ask. Perhaps it was an ex-boyfriend she didn’t want to talk about or some other personal story that wasn’t any of his business.

Andi and Jonah both followed Buffy’s stare and Cyrus tried to figure out what was going on. He then thought he pinpointed the source of hatred. A group of guys being obnoxiously loud and rude.

“The basketball team,” Buffy said and Cyrus focused more on the group, now knowing they were indeed the group she was referring too. He then noticed one face.

“Especially that arrogant SOB of a co-captain,” she spit the words out and Cyrus knew not to get on her bad side. If her stare wouldn’t kill you, her words might would. And if that wasn’t enough he was positive she would have to strength to knock you out.

“Who?” he asked, afraid the name might be…

“TJ.”


	4. I know you lie, cause your lips are moving

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> so like pretty much everything I write there's gonna be some angst.  
> sorry it took a long time for me to update, had to work extra the past weeks and have just been dead tired

Cyrus wasn’t sure if he could ask something or not. He hoped this wasn’t the end of the conversation, because he really was curious what it was about TJ they hated. All Cyrus knew was a great, caring and generous guy. But then Cyrus only knew him a day. They have known TJ probably his whole life. It was quiet for a bit and Buffy was still staring angrily across the cafeteria. Then Jonah cleared his throat and Cyrus expected to see him smile and telling them about something not at all relevant to save the mood. But Cyrus saw his serious expression and he knew that wasn’t going to happen. He hadn’t actually thought Jonah was capable of such an expression. He has been all smiles so far.

“Basically no one likes him,” he told Cyrus as he fidgeted with the straw of his drink. “He’s just a real… asshole.”

Cyrus never thought he’d hear Jonah curse. He seemed so positive about everyone and everything. 

“I’ve known him since little league. He’s the reason I quit playing baseball. He’s just a selfish guy, who doesn’t care about other people or their feelings.”

“You got that right,” Buffy scoffed. She sighed and finally turned to focus on her friends again. “In middle school I wanted to join the basketball team. We didn’t have a girl’s team, so I figured I’d try out for the boy’s team. I knew I was good enough. I mean, I’ve seen them play. They really sucked. Basically, the only one who could play was TJ,” she said as sighed and rolled her eyes. It was like it hurt her to admit that. “So, I went to tryouts and TJ just laughed in my face and convinced the coach to not let me tryout. I was just so angry. I guess he was like, threatened or something. He’s always been the best. Even now, I hate to say it, but he’s still the best one the team. But he really makes sure it stays that way. He manipulates, he cheats, he threatens… he’s just a horrible guy. So, if you can, stay as far from his as possible.”

Cyrus looked back at the group. It really seemed like TJ was the center of the group. Like it all revolved around him.

“Then why does everyone seem to like him?” Cyrus asked. It was probably a dumb question. He knew in his old school that the bullies were popular, mostly because they would ruin your life if you didn’t worship them.

“Because he made sure we got to state last year. The captain hurt his shoulder mid-season and TJ stepped up. He became co-captain, which a sophomore had never been before. And he got them to states. We came in 4th, but it’s a record for the school and people just worship him now. They don’t care he’s a bastard, they just care that we have something to celebrate in this school,” Buffy said, “Now you’re updated on our shitty social pyramid, let’s talk about something else, yes? Because I’m this close to losing it.”

Cyrus just quickly nodded and let the other three talk about whatever. He didn’t really pay attention. He just kept sneaking glances at TJ. He remembered something the other told when they were in Santa Monica. He hadn’t thought too much about the remark then, but it started to make a bit of sense. When they were in the arcade, TJ seemed so happy and like he didn’t have a worry in the world. But he mentioned something about pressure. How he couldn’t let go like that back home. And Cyrus now got it. Thank you, psychiatrist parents.

TJ was just acting. He was putting on a show. He hides himself, because he feels he needs to succeed. He needs to be good at something. Maybe it has to do with parents who want him to be a star, or it is something he needs to prove to himself. Whatever it is, it severely limits him in his life. As Cyrus was thinking he barely realized he was now full on staring at TJ. And then TJ turned to him and Cyrus could tell the moment TJ recognized him. He smirk on his face slowly disappeared and he just stared. No emotion whatsoever on his face. Cyrus wasn’t able to read him. And they just looked at each other. It felt like minutes, but Cyrus knew it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds. Their eye contact got disrupted by a guy that smacked TJ’s shoulder. Immediately Cyrus noticed the change in his demeanor. And he also knew he was fucked. Because if he was right, and the TJ he knows is the real one, then it’s going to be difficult to stay away from that.

***

All day Cyrus kept looking around as he walked through the hallway. Hoping to spot TJ and just talk to him. Let him explain, or tell his side of the story. That was if TJ even wanted to talk to him. A part of him wouldn’t be surprised if TJ just ignored Cyrus and pretended like they had never met.

It was the end of the school day and he still had not seen TJ. He walked out through the main entrance and waited there. The day before he saw TJ leave from that entrance, so it was likely he would use it again that day. Cyrus had 15 minutes until his bus would leave, so he’d give it about 10 minutes before he’d walk to the bus.

The first minutes felt long. So many people passing him, none of them being the dark blonde boy. He was ready to give up when he saw him. Cyrus stood up from the bench he sat on and now needed to decide on a game plan. The other was with his friends, so Cyrus didn’t know if it was okay to just approach him and ask if he could talk. So he just stood there, waiting for TJ to pass, hoping he’d at least spare the shorter boy a glance.

For a second the boys had eye contact and Cyrus hesitantly smiled and motioned with his head if he could follow him. He thought TJ would just walk by, when he said bye to his friends and slowly turned to Cyrus. TJ didn’t look at him, he just looked to something in the distance.

“Can we talk? Please?” Cyrus asked. He hated how small his voice sounded. He fidgeted with the strap of his bag, waiting for TJ to say… something. Whatever. Anything would do right now.

TJ sighed and the shorter boy could see the wheels in his head turning. He could see the conflict on his face and then he looked at Cyrus and his eyes seemed sad. Then he nodded and started walking back in the school.

Cyrus quickly followed and walked besides him, leaving plenty of space between them. Then they walked into an empty classroom and TJ looked around the hallway before closing the door behind them.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know, I swear. We had just moved and...” Cyrus started, not sure what he even wanted to say. The basketball player put his hands on the door and let his head drop.

“If you… I can leave you alone,” Cyrus then softly offered, but it was a blatant lie. It wasn’t something Cyrus wanted. And he wasn’t sure if he could.

TJ sighed, shook his head and then turned to Cyrus. He could see the exhaustion on TJ’s face.

“The guy you met,” he started, before walking a bit further in the room, “He doesn’t exist. Okay? He’s… he’s not me, I’m not him. I  _ can’t _ be him.”

Cyrus just nodded.

“I’m sorry, Cyrus. I really am. But that was just one day. And I’ve got two more years here. I need to do well in school and play basketball. That’s all I need to do and then I’m out of here. I can’t risk it.”

Cyrus bit his lip, “Who said you’d risk anything? What does… us have to with those two?”

“Everything.”

Cyrus just nodded. “Okay. Then Santa Monica didn’t happen. I’ll stay out of your way. Sorry if I’m an inconvenience.” He moved to the door, just wanting to leave. Nothing he would say would change TJ’s mind. He had made it up a long time ago and the younger boy couldn’t see it changing.

“I’m sorry,” he heard TJ softly say.

“Yeah. Me too. Because I actually had a really good time with you.”

With those words Cyrus left the room, fastly walking to the bus stop. He felt tears in his eyes, but tried his best to not let them fall. He wasn’t worth it. It was just one day. It meant nothing. The connection they had, he had just imagined it.

Who was he kidding? That connection he felt...it was like life finally made sense to him.


	5. All I wanna be is somebody to you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologize for the massive delay.  
> I had written quite a bit, but was feeling it was getting too angsty and just wasn't liking where it was going, so I deleted it and rewrote the thing. And I'm in the middle of switching jobs, which is not helping in my time management.  
> I can't promise the next update to be soon, but I'll try my best!  
> Also, as usual, sorry for any mistakes and if things seem too OOC

Cyrus never believed in love at first sight or having one true love. It seemed like something from fairytales and after having seen the marriage of his parents falling apart, who could blame him. Yes, they both remarried, but that meant they have loved two times already, so is ‘the one’ really out there? It was something that he was thinking about a lot the past week. Maybe in the past, true love existed. You wouldn't travel too much and usually stay in the same place pretty much forever. You wouldn't meet so many people. But now, you meet them everywhere. When you go travel to different states and countries and especially with social media. You meet so many people, so the chance is also a lot bigger to meet more than one person that you could love. It’s statistics, really. So one true love, he doesn’t think it exists. But there’s a part of him that wouldn’t mind being convinced otherwise. Meeting someone and growing old with them. Isn’t that what everyone wants in life?

***

Cyrus sat at the table in the cafeteria they usually sat. Jonah had something frisbee related, probably about setting up the team. He got a yes from to school to start a frisbee team, but only if they get a certain amount of players. So he had been rallying all week to get people to join him. Andi was helping Jonah, because of course she was. And now he was just waiting on Buffy. Who should have been there about 5 minutes ago. He sighed as he looked around. He felt awkward sitting all alone, when so many tables were filled with people and large groups of friends. He liked the small group he was a part of, that definitely wasn’t the issue. But it did mean that when two or three couldn’t make it, you were pretty much alone. And it was a feeling Cyrus hated, even though he’s used to it.

He finally spotted Buffy as she quickly walked into the cafeteria and to the line to get her lunch. She spotted him and with a small wave she mouthed ‘sorry’. He shrugged with a hesitant smile, showing it was okay. He wasn’t going to tell his new friend how awkward he felt sitting alone at a table.

At his old school he rarely ate lunch in the cafeteria. He usually ate something at the library, where he wasn’t officially allowed to eat, but he helped the librarian so she turned a blind eye. Or he ate while doing some homework in the chemistry classroom where the teacher let him in as he graded and checked homework. Cyrus was positive the guy felt sorry for him.

As Cyrus watched Buffy in the line he noticed all of a sudden someone skipped the line and grabbed the last muffin. Cyrus was lucky he got one, but he knew Buffy also had a soft spot for them. She denied it, but she did get grumpy when she didn’t get to eat one.

Knowing Buffy’s temper, Cyrus could only guess this wasn’t going to end well. But no way he was going to jump in and help. First of all, because he likes to not get hurt. And secondly, Buffy wouldn’t accept any help. So he’d get hurt two times. Once by the rude guy, and also by Buffy. So bad idea, all in all.

Cyrus wasn’t able to see who the guy was, but as he looked at the complete picture, and not just the two currently in a heated discussion, he noticed the basketball team. With TJ. He still had a hard time believing this was the same guy as the one who patiently helped Cyrus with the basketball game at the arcade. Now Cyrus thinks back, he’s not at all surprised TJ’s a basketball player. He was really good at the game. But he didn’t make fun Cyrus when he sucked at it. He calmly gave tips and kept encouraging him even though he didn’t get any baskets. They blew some money through it and eventually TJ just shot all the balls through the hoop to get the price. But it didn’t matter, because he was nice during it all. This guy, however, he wasn’t nice. Or helpful. Just a bit of an asshole, really.

Cyrus noticed no one was stepping in. The guys of the basketball team just looked amused at the discussion going on. The discussion that was about to turn into a fight. Buffy’s hands started to become fists and Cyrus knew he needed to do something. So he stood up and rushed over, hating himself in the process and hoping this wouldn’t be the moment high school became a hell again.

“Hey Buffy,” Cyrus said with a tight smile, “Everything okay?” Maybe they’d just step away and Cyrus wouldn’t have to do or say anything.

“No,” she snapped at him, making the younger boy flinch. “This dickhead thinks he can just grab whatever he wants. Apparently social rules are unknown to him.”

Cyrus felt the eyes of the group on him, and especially the eyes of TJ burned in his skin. Cyrus slowly turned to the guy still holding the muffin. His heart beat in his throat. He knew he didn’t have the guts to do anything. But then he opened his mouth.

“Is it possible we can get that muffin? You see, my friend here was in line first.”

The moment Cyrus spoke he knew they would laugh. His parents always taught to solve things with words, but he had completely forgotten most teens don’t solve problems like this. They didn’t give any arguments or reasons. They just said ‘yes’ or ‘no’ with sometimes added, ‘because I say so’ and ‘fuck off’.

Cyrus stood ready for impact, but the laughs didn’t come. They just stared some more at him.

“Who the fuck are you?” the guy then asked, confusion on his face, “And why are you talking? You got nothing to do with this. Just go back to whatever loser thing you were doing. The grown-ups are talking here.”

“Pff, talking,” Buffy said with an eye roll.

“I was saying words, right?” he then responded with a harsh glare.

“Define words,” Buffy shot back at him and Cyrus was just getting nervous. This was not getting better.

“Reed,” TJ then said and the bickering stopped as they stared at TJ. The latter just stared back at Reed with an eyebrow raised and Reed’s jaw clenched. It was like the two had a whole argument with their stares. But then Reed turned to look back at Buffy and he put the muffin on her tray.

“I gotta stay in shape, you however don’t have to. After all, it’s not like the girl’s team is any good.” And with that Reed left, the other guys trailing behind him. TJ didn’t move and looked at Buffy and then Cyrus. With a nod he turned and left the two.

“That… was weird,” Buffy said, “Like, TJ just stopped him. TJ. He did an okay thing. I’m confused,” she said and looked at the muffin on her tray. “And I got my muffin.” Turning to Cyrus he the shock on her face. “Did that really happen?”

“Guess so,” Cyrus said not saying another word as he walked back to their table. He did something he never thought of doing. And it actually ended up being okay. He didn’t get hit. He couldn’t wait to tell his mom that he willingly entered a discussion. She’d be so proud of him. His go to move is always getting as far away as possible from conflict. But then he thought about the last few minutes and what really happened. TJ was passive the whole time. He just stood there as the other one, Reed, did all the douchey stuff. He wondered if that was normally their roles. Yes, they say TJ is a bad guy. But maybe he just has bad friends. And that makes people think he’s a bad guy.

“First off all, sorry you had to wait,” Buffy said as she plopped down on the chair next to Cyrus. He just looked up, a little dazed, still very much in though. “I had to stay behind because my teacher was wondering if I would tutor in math. Of which the answer is no. But I told her I’d think about it, because she wouldn’t let me leave.” She grabbed her muffin and took a big bite, clearly eating her frustrations. “And then, I just… that was so weird, just there. I know everyone always listens to whatever TJ does or want. Like, the power he has is scary. But for once, he did something right.” She furrowed her eyebrows as she stared at the muffin. “But why would he do that? You know, I actually don’t care. I don’t even want to think about him. Let’s just call it a fluke and leave it at that,” she said before taking another big bite of the muffin.

Cyrus just nodded as she spoke, having learned in just a few days to let her rant. He doesn’t want to get snapped at.

But he was wondering the same thing. Why would he do that? Was it because he was there? TJ did look at Cyrus before walking away. This was getting frustrating. Cyrus needs to let TJ go, because otherwise it’s going to be a long year.

  
  
  



End file.
